Recognising rising stars

Read about some of the previous winners in the Best Newcomer - Freelancing category of the ITI Awards

It’s always good to hear about individuals who have managed to hit the ground running when starting out on their translation or interpreting career.

It can be a very challenging time – getting your first clients, setting up your business systems, or for those working in-house, getting used to a new organisation and becoming an integral part of the team.

The last couple of years have held particular challenges in terms of launching a career and gaining work, which makes your achievements even more remarkable, and why we want to hear about them and give you the recognition you deserve.

Our 2022 winner was Andrew Bell

With the Covid pandemic adversely affecting the jobs market, Andrew was forced to begin his translation career as a freelancer from day 1. With no experience or contacts he set about networking via the ITI Networks, developing a strong online presence within the translation community, undertaking extensive CPD and signing up to the Medical Network’s mentoring programme.

This proactive approach enabled him to gain vital contacts and experience and within six months Andrew was working full time, almost exclusively in his chosen specialism of medical translation.

Speaking about his experience of winning the ITI award Andrew says:

'Winning the ITI award has opened so many doors for me. From providing me with a platform to network with other colleagues, to even directly resulting in work from a now regular client. The submission process was a great reflective exercise which made me realise how much work I had put into my career and reminded me how important it is to celebrate our successes, no matter how big or small they are. 

Our 2021 winner was Hannah Lawrence

Over the course of 2020 Hannah faced many challenges, not least the pandemic which put paid to her plans to develop a specialism in the travel and tourism sector. Instead she focused her efforts on seeking out clients in industries that looked set to weather the storm, such as those with an emphasis on technology or in areas of continued growth such as sustainability and the environment.

Hannah also succeeded in building a stable client base, totalling 19 different clients, 11 of whom are direct clients. She also published a portfolio of her work, introduced new software to give greater insight into her business, developed her translation skills through a RevClub and successfully transferred her business to New Zealand.

Perhaps her biggest achievement though was completing #ThatTranslatorCanCook, a year-long translation, cooking and blogging challenge. It was a CPD and marketing tool that involved translating 51 recipes totalling over 14,000 words, that ultimately helped Hannah develop a new specialism and gain regular client work.

Our 2020 winner was Sarah Bowyer

Sarah overcame challenges to develop her new career, going from no work to working full-time within her first three months as a freelance translator. She translated 500,000+ source words in 2019, gaining rewarding work in specialist areas (law and sport). She built a network, and made professional contributions (articles and webinars) and a significant CPD commitment.

Sarah has really kept the momentum going in even more recent times, becoming one of the tutors on ITI’s Setting Up as a Freelance Translator programme, and presenting a session at the Institute’s Christmas Hamper event in 2020.

Speaking of her experience of winning the ITI Award, Sarah says:

‘Even making the awards submission was a helpful exercise. I'm constantly thinking about how I can do better, so it was rewarding to reflect on how far I'd come since starting out. To win the award was a great confidence boost and the recognition is another differentiator for my business in a competitive market. I even got some good press coverage in my local newspaper. It was also fantastic to have something to celebrate in a very depressing year! I was particularly touched by how many kind messages of congratulations I received, which made me feel connected and realise what a welcoming, friendly and professional community we have.’